September 30, 2016

The first month of school is in the books!  What a busy month of getting to know one another and learning! 

Congratulations to Ella, who was the first 1/2E Student of the Week!

We had a wonderful time at the Terry Fox Walk.  Thank you to Mrs & Mr. Babb and Ms. Shah, who joined our class on the walk!  Also, thank you to the Devon's Lions Club and Town of Devon for the delicious treats!  

September 29, 2016

Our Words Their Way launch week culminated today with the Be A Detective activity.  I love this spelling program, as it engages students and challenges them in unique ways.

In Math, the Grade 1s have been busy reviewing their knowledge of one and two attribute repeating patterns.  The Grade 2s are hard at work this week learning and reviewing the concept of growing patterns.  I challenge you to ask your Grade 2 children to create a growing pattern at home using lego and for them to tell you the pattern rule (i.e.: 1 lego, 3 lego, 5 lego, rule is +2).

Reminders:

- Tomorrow is school spirit wear day, students are encouraged to wear RBES colours or their Raptor Wear!  

- Tomorrow is the Terry Fox Walk in the afternoon.  Thank you to our volunteers and to the Lions Club and Town of Devon for the delicious snacks.  We will be walking rain or shine, so please ensure that your child is dressed for the weather.  Additional details can be found HERE.  

- Scholastic Book orders are due tomorrow.  

September 27, 2016

Day #2 of our Words Their Way introduction went exceptionally well.  Yesterday, students cut their sorts and learned all about their sorting rule (Grade 1 - initial consonant, Grade 2 - short a vs short u). Today, students independently sorted and then chose 10 words to draw and label. 

Students were excited for our third library class and were met with a surprise upon entering the library.  It was wonderful to have Mrs. Kloschinsky read and spend library time with our class. 

Reminder that tomorrow is school photo day!  

September 26, 2016

Today in gym, students continued to explore locomotion.  They moved fast, slow, high and low.  They also played a fun game called "Snakes in the Middle", where they moved and if caught in the middle when the music stopped, they had to complete a movement task.  

In Math, we are learning about the Math Workshop rotation, "Math Facts".  Students had their second exposure to a differentiated, online math basic fact practice site, xtraMath. A paper is coming home with the log in information.  This is an optional activity that students can explore at home if they wish.

Reminders:
- T-Shirt payment is due.
- Terry Fox permission must be completed through Powerschool.
- Seeking Terry Fox volunteers, if you wish to join us on this beautiful walk, please email. 
- School photos on Wednesday.

September 23, 2016

Our busy week continued today!  We began the day with the school wide assembly, then we had time for a quick snack and it was off to recess and bus safety. 

In the afternoon, the Grade 1 students joined the other Grade 1 classes and went on their fall walk.  They were excited to tell about it and show us the leaves they had collected when they returned.  A giant THANK YOU to Mrs. Tatchell and Mrs. Wagner, who joined our class today and brought back some fabulous photos!

The Grade 2s had an incredibly hard working afternoon.  If your little ones are tired, it's because their brains are very full of new social studies knowledge!  We took advantage of this time as a small group to learn about the 4 communities we will be studying this year in Social Studies:  Devon, Saskatoon, Meteghan and Iqaluit.  Over the next 10 months, we will focus on one community at a time, learning about the people, land and cultures of each.  

We also learned the term growing pattern and created growing patterns.  Ask your child to create a growing pattern this evening and to tell you the pattern rule (i.e.: add 1, add 3, etc).

I choose only a couple photos each day to post on the blog, but take many, many, many more!  So be sure to check them out on the Photo Gallery page.  Feel free to download and save any pictures you want. 

September 22, 2016

It was the perfect day for sunflower seed roasting.  This was something new for both the students and myself; we learned together as I had never done it before!  Thank you again to the Bablitz family for the wonderful sunflower donation, we have enjoyed the exploration of this fall flower this week!  

Today we learned a new math game, In the Dump, that focuses on two math concepts: subitizing (the ability to 'see' a small amount of objects and know how many there are without counting) and adding.  This is a game that can easily be played at home using dominoes and cards.

Upcoming Field Trips
- Sept. 23 1pm - Grade 1 Fall Walk - Please be sure you have completed your child's permission form on line and that the volunteers have completed their Volunteer Form.  Any questions about permission or forms can be directed to Mrs. Horrocks in the office.  Thank you to Mrs. Wagner and Mrs. Tatchell.

- Sept. 30 1pm - Terry Fox Walk - We will meet in the gym for a short presentation and then head outside to begin our walk.  We will have all students walk this year with their class.  Upon returning to the school, each student will get a hot dog, apple, and granola bar. We encourage students to bring their own reusable water bottle.  I am currently seeking volunteers to join us on this event, please email me if you are interested.  

Tasty Tuesday
Thank you to the following parents who have signed up to donate Tasty Tuesday ingredients for our class: Mrs. Kuchirka, Mrs. Webb, Mrs. Cassell, Ms. Shah & Mrs. Courtemanche.  We are still seeking parents to sign up for March-June, please email if you are interested.

Scholastic
Thank you to Mrs. Webb, who has volunteered to take care of our Scholastic ordering this year!  The first Scholastic order of the year will be coming home shortly, and is due back on the 30th.  Please note that we accept cheque or online payment for your orders.  Details about the Scholastic Online Order can be found in the Newsletters, Notes and Forms page of our website.  

September 21, 2016

Today we had the pleasure of having the Lord Strathcona's Mounted Troop visit RBES.  It was amazing!  We began our day by visiting with Sam, an 8 year old horse. Then Soldier Ed came to our classroom and taught us all about the history of the Troop.  The whole school and many community members came together after recess to watch the Musical Ride and pet the horses.  You can click HERE to watch a video posted by RBES.  What a special experience. 

Students finished their sunflowers - wow!  This was our first attempt at watercolour, something that is quite tricky, and students did an amazing job; they turned out beautifully! 

In Math, we had our second day of learning about Math Workshops.  Students are attempting to build 10 minutes of stamina for At Your Seat, an independent activity.

Reminders:
- The RBES Parent Council meeting is this evening at 7pm. All parents are welcome and encouraged to attend!  Details can be found on Mrs. Kloschinsky's blog: http://rbesnews.blogspot.ca/2016/09/hello-robina-families-this-week.html
- We are seeking parents volunteers to donate Tasty Tuesday ingredients from January-June.  Please email if you are able to help out with one of the months.
- We are hoping to recruit a parent volunteer to organize the Scholastic book orders for our class. If you are interested, please email.

September 20, 2016

Today was our first Tasty Tuesday.  Now, anyone who knows a student who was in my class or Mrs. Suter's class previously, knows that this is the highlight of the school year.  Each month, we follow a recipe, make a delicious snack and then write a recipe review.  Today students made Caramel Apple Dips, and they were met with rave reviews. I provided the ingredients for this recipe and kindly ask that parents sign up for the remaining months.  Thank you to the three wonderful ladies who have filled October, November and December. If you are able to donate the ingredients for a month (January-June), please email me and I will add you name to the list of generous donors.

In the afternoon, I was away with several other RBES teachers at an Adapted PE session.  It was amazing!  I feel fortunate to have been able to learn with such a fun and eager group of educators.  

Mrs. Towne spent the afternoon with 1-2E, she is a loved and adored former teacher at our school and we were fortunate to have had her in our room.  Students estimated the number of seeds that were taken from one sunflower, then used tens frames to count them.  There was a whopping 455 seeds removed by the blue group yesterday.  

Students also began working on a beautiful sunflower watercolour.  I am excited to finish them tomorrow and then display them outside our classroom.  

September 19, 2016

This morning we were hard at work preparing for the start of Words Their Way in October. Students completed their 25 word spelling assessment, which will be used to place students according to the spelling pattern that they are ready to learn.  It was a challenging task, and I complement all of the students for their effort and attention to detail.

In the afternoon, we began learning about Sunflowers.  Kai's grandparents grow sunflowers and they kindly donated 6 to our classroom.  Today we pulled out the seeds and are excited to roast, count and plant them over the course of the week.

In gym, we learned about three types of locomotion: jump, hop and skip.  Ask your child to show you the differences between the three.

September 15, 2016

Today we completed our first Math Worksheet on patterning. Your child is bringing it home tonight and I encourage you to go over it with them.  Have your child explain to you the attributes that are changing in each row and also how they identified the core and checked that it was correct. We also used the Chromebooks for the first time to explore math numbers activities on ABCYa.  Modern day children are often familiar with touch screens, but are less familiar with the trackpad, so today our focus was numbers 1-100 and properly using the trackpad.  

Today we launched Buddy Reading in Daily 5.  Students perfected the buddy hunt and also sitting E-E-K-K.  This is one of the trickiest Daily 5 activities because it is done with a partner, but we did manage to achieve 3 minutes of stamina on our first day.  I can't wait to continue working on this Monday. 

There is no school tomorrow, as it is a PD Day.  I am looking forward to my session tomorrow on the DIBELS reading assessment.  Have a wonderful long weekend! 

September 14, 2016

Have you ever heard of the Lotsatathalon?  Probably not, because we created it ourselves.  This week, students have been working on locomotion stations and today they had a blast carefully completing all 9 of the locomotion events in order and racing to the finish line.  

In Math we continued our exploration of two attribute patterns.  Students played a game where one student created a pattern core and their partner had to complete the pattern.  There are some amazing things happening in our pattern unit!  

We were over the moon excited today when students successfully achieved 11 minutes of stamina during the Daily 5 rotation that included the two activities we have learned thus far, Read to Self and Word Work.  Way to go 1-2E!! 

September 13, 2016

Today students worked through 10 stations and explored locomotion in gym.

During Math, we took our basic knowledge of attributes, patterns and pattern core and extended it!  Students amazed me with their ability to identify two attributes and use them in a pattern.  For example: (blue circle, red stick, red stick), blue circle, red stick, red stick, blue circle, red stick, red stick.  Great work!!

In Social Studies we used the compass to explore direction.  You can try this at home tonight.  
Using the map below, identify:
1. What is north of the library?
2. What is west of the supermarket?
3. What is south of Ariana's house?
4. What is east of Catherine's house?
5. Make up even more questions and see if you can stump your 1-2E child.

September 12, 2016

This morning we played a favourite game - Ladders.  You too can play this game at home, all you need is two dice and this gameboard. The players take turns rolling two digit numbers and placing them in order on the ladder.  Ask your child to share this with you, I know you will love it!

Last week, students successfully achieved 10 minutes of Read to Self, so today they were elated to launch another Daily 5 activity.  Word Work provides students with an opportunity to review Word Wall words in a fun way.

In writing, students journaled about their favourite type of book to read.  I was excited to read about the variety of literature that is of interest to my students!  Tomorrow I encourage students to try and find these books in the library tomorrow.

Math was interrupted by a fire drill, but students did a great job of identifying the pattern core on the patterns they created with unified cubes.

Reminder: Tomorrow is our second library day, please ensure your child returns his/her books in the morning.

September 9, 2016

This morning was our first Character Assembly.  Check out Mrs. Kloschinsky's blog for information about the content covered this week.

Oh, Social studies was so fun today!  Both grades are launching their year with a mapping unit.  We learned the terms; map, globe and compass.  Students were challenged to come home and show you the compass on your phones and identify North, East, South and West.  This is a fun activity that you can do anywhere.  I challenge you to make North (Never), East (Eat), South (Sour) and West (Worms) part of your daily vocabulary over the next couple of weeks.  

September 8, 2016

This morning in Math, we learned another new math word!  We now know sort, attribute and pattern.  Ask your child to explain what each of these words mean and to show you how to make a pattern using LEGO.

We had a Fire Drill this morning during Music, students did an amazing job exiting the school in a speedy and safe manner.  

In Art, we talked about the beautiful work of 19th century artist, Wassily Kandinsky. Students looked at the properties of one of his very famous pieces of work, "Concentric Circles". We then discussed fall trees/leaves and all the colours we see in the fall. Students used all this knowledge to create fall tree masterpieces.

September 7, 2016

Today we played Two Foot Tag and Tic Tac Toss in gym.  

During Daily 5, we reviewed the carpet bell procedures and posted our Carpet Bell I Chart.  We also discussed two ways to read: Read the Pictures and Read the Words.  Students achieved 6 minutes 44 seconds of stamina today, we are getting closer to our 10 minute goal!  Your child is bringing home a note today that provides a general overview of the Daily 5 program, throughout the year, additional letters will come home as we learn new CAFE techniques (comprehension, accuracy, fluency and extended vocabulary).

In Math, students learned the word attribute and then sorted various math manipulative based on attributes.  Ask your child tonight if they can tell you what the terms sort and attribute mean.  

Today was the first Grade 1 & 2 character assembly of the year.  

September 6, 2016

I hope you all had a wonderful long weekend!  Today we dove head first into the curriculum and began learning routines that will shape the rest of our year.

This morning we had our first library class with Mrs. Rogers.  Tuesday will be library day and Mrs. Rogers allowed each student to take home one book today.  Please ensure your child returns his/her book prior to Tuesday, so that a new book can be signed out next week.  

We learned another math game today, War.  Students are excited to share this game with you tonight. All you need is one deck of cards and two willing participants.  Have fun!

We also launched Daily 5 today by discussing the carpet bell.  Students chose 5 books for their bags and began Read to Self.  It was amazing to watch as they achieved 3 minutes of on task reading, we are excited to build more stamina as the week goes along.  

Our day ended with a lesson on sorting.  Ask your child what it means to sort (place the similar items together).  I encourage you to have your child sort objects at home by various attributes (colour, shape, size, type, etc).  This concept the foundation for the Patterns and Relations unit in both grades.